Money is tight for quite a few people these days. You have to make better decisions about what you do will your money. But that doesn’t mean that your health should suffer. What good is it to have money but be too hurt or sick to do anything with it?

I’m going to provide you with some inexpensive ways that you can help yourself feel better on a budget.

Epsom Salt Baths
If you find that you are stressed and your body is sore and achy, invest in some Epsom salts (about $1 for a quart ). It can be found at your local discount store or pharmacy. Dissolve two cups of epsom salt into a bathtub full of warm water and soak in it for at least 15 minutes. Epsom salt is proven to help:

• Flush toxins and heavy metals from the body, easing muscle pain and helping the body to eliminate harmful substances.
• Ease muscle cramps
• Improve heart and circulatory health, reducing irregular heartbeats, preventing hardening of the arteries, reducing blood clots and lowering blood pressure.
• Improve ability for the body to use insulin
• Improve nerve function by electrolyte regulation
• Relieve stress. (Excess adrenaline and stress are believed to drain magnesium, a natural stress reliever, from the body. Magnesium is necessary for the body to bind adequate amounts of serotonin, a mood-elevating chemical within the brain that creates a feeling of well being and relaxation.)
• Reduce inflammation (swelling)
• Improve oxygen use within the body
• Improve absorption of nutrients
• Improve formation of joint proteins, brain tissue and mucin proteins.
• Prevents or eases migraine headaches.

While you’re in the tub you can soak and relax. Add some bubbles in there like you used to do when you were a kid (Mr. Bubble $5, or your favorite Bath & Body Works shower gel). Play some relaxing music. Bring you iPad or tablet in with you (and place it somewhere within sight but carefully outside of the “splash zone”) and turn on your favorite show on Hulu or Netflix that you’ve been dying to catch up on. Be sure to be careful getting up out of the water. People can sometimes feel lightheaded after soaking in a Epsom salt bath, so be sure to hydrate.

Heat Therapy
Buy a heating pad. For those sore aching muscles add a heating pad to help alleviate pain. If it’s your neck primarily that hurts there are heating pads that are crafted especially for the neck. But the standard rectangular heating pads are a great option as well. I personally love the Tara Herbal Ease brand. These heat packs feel AND smell great. There is the standard Uni pack for your back or for your neck there is the Neck Pillow.  Just heat in a microwave for a few seconds, relax and enjoy!

You can always opt to dampen a hand towel and pop it in the microwave for a few seconds at a time and apply it to the aching part of your body.

Ice therapy
For those painful swollen areas use ice therapy. You can invest in an ice pack or the frugal way is to use a bag of frozen vegetables right from your freezer.

Don’t know whether you should heat or ice that pesky pain that you’re experiencing? Check out this previous blog post: heat vs cold therapy.

Work Out
I’m not saying that you need to go out and run the New York marathon right out the gate, but you need to start moving. If working out doesn’t interest you at all try something slow to get you started. Yoga is a great way to get moving. It helps you focus on your breathing, stretch tight muscles, get the body moving and set the mind at ease. It’s a great way to start or end your day.You can take beginners classes near you or purchase a beginners yoga DVD. You can also explore YouTube yoga channels to get you started like YogaVidyaEnglish.

Working out in the winter can be difficult. Running weather is long gone with these cold New York winters and membership fees at local gyms can be astronomical. But those aren’t your only options! Try these work outs from 360Fit. You’ll get a personalized workout from Shanna Farrar, a certified Nike trainer, for only $30 a month at 360Fit. Check out her free workouts on Shanna Farrar’s YouTube Page.

Stretch

If you’re experiencing tight muscles and pain consider stretching. Those muscles are locking up and preventing adequate blood flow from getting to that area. Stretching and heat in that area can really help you feel better.

Are these things easy to do? Sure they are. Are they easy not to do? Definitely. But make sure you do them. Your body will thank you.